Tofieldia divergens Bureau & Franch.

Leaves 3--22 cm × 2--4 mm, rather rigid, margin scabrous, apex acuminate, veins inconspicuous. Scape 8--35 cm, usually with 1 or 2 linear leaves in proximal part. Racemes 2--10 cm, many flowered. Flowers ascending to slightly nodding; pedicel (1--)1.5--3(--7) mm at anthesis; bracteole 1, cupular, apically slightly 3-lobed. Perianth segments white, narrowly oblanceolate to narrowly elliptic, 2--3 × 0.4--0.5 mm. Stamens protruding from perianth. Ovary oblong-ovoid, ca. 3 mm, 3-lobed to 3-fid apically. Styles rather slender, 0.5--1 mm, obviously longer than anthers. Capsule horizontally spreading to nodding, obovoid-trigonous or ellipsoid, ca. 3 × 2 mm, apically 3-fid to 3-parted, with persistent styles 1--1.5 mm and stigmas scarcely thickened. Seeds linear-fusiform, ca. 1 × 0.5 mm, without a white, longitudinal band. Fl. Jun--Aug, fr. Jul--Sep.

W Guizhou, SW Sichuan, Yunnan.

* Crevices on rocks or cliffs, moist grassy slopes, forests; 1000--4300 m.

Tofieldia brevistyla Franchet; T. esquirolii H. Léveillé; T. labordei H. Léveillé & Vaniot; T. tenella Handel-Mazzetti; T. yunnanensis Franchet.

Flowering from June to August; fruiting from July to September.

Tofieldia divergens is close relative of Tofieldia thibetica, but differs from the latter in its seeds without a white, longitudinal band (vs. with a white, longitudinal band on 1 side), pedicel 1.5-5 mm (vs. 5-12 mm), capsule horizontal to nodding (vs. suberect).

Tofieldia divergens is occurring in W Guizhou, SW Sichuan, Yunnan of China.

Phylogenetic relationships of the genera of Tofieldiaceae (Tofieldia, Triantha, Pleea, Harperocallis, Isidrogalvia) were inferred from DNA sequences of matK and rbcL (Tamura et al., 2004). Results shown Tofieldia, Triantha, Pleea, and Harperocallis form a clade, which can be regarded as corresponding to Tofieldiaceae. In the Tofieldiaceae, Pleea first diverges from the remaining three genera, and then, Harperocallis diverges from the Tofieldia-Triantha complex. In the Tofieldia-Triantha complex, Tofieldia species form the same clade, and Triantha species form another clade.

Leaves 3-22 cm long, 2-4 mm wide, rather rigid, margin scabrous, apex acuminate, veins inconspicuous. Scape 8-35 cm, usually with 1 or 2 linear leaves in proximal part. Racemes 2-10 cm, many flowered. Flowers ascending to slightly nodding; pedicel 1.5-5 mm at anthesis; bracteole 1, cupular, apically slightly 3-lobed. Perianth segments white, narrowly oblanceolate to narrowly elliptic, 2-3 mm long, 0.4-0.5 mm wide. Stamens protruding from perianth. Ovary oblong-ovoid, ca. 3 mm, 3-lobed to 3-fid apically. Styles rather slender, 0.5-1 mm, obviously longer than anthers. Capsule horizontally spreading to nodding, obovoid-trigonous or ellipsoid, ca. 3 mm long, 2 mm wide, apically 3-fid to 3-parted, with persistent styles 1-1.5 mm and stigmas scarcely thickened. Seeds linear-fusiform, ca. 1 mm long, 0.5 mm wide, without a white, longitudinal band.

Growing in crevices on rocks or cliffs, moist grassy slopes, forests; 1000-4300 m.